Natsu's Journey
by FTLearner
Summary: Natsu is still under the teaching of Igneel, but see's the life that he leads up to the Tenrou arc, will he change the fate of his guild or will he be too weak to save them? And how did Natsu see the future and is the king of dragons really all he has to worry about? A retelling of FairyTail with some or rather a lot of changes! Natsu X harem
1. Chapter 1 : Regret and Pain

**DISCLAIMER: i do not own fairytail in any shape or form all of that rights belongs to Mashima Hiro.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Regret and Pain

Mixed in the Rain

His eyes opened slowly, clearing the fuzziness from unconsciousness that swallowed him earlier and almost instantly a sharp overbearing pain woke him up completely.

As his eyes adjusted, a pool of blood was all that was in sight. A realization hits him; then fear… an unshakable fear over took his being.

Finding some resolve; he set his eyes away from the blood, but all that was in view were flames engulfing the once lushes forest of the island, the guild tree that empowered them through their emblem has fallen, and bodies laid out in strange angle; bodies of his dead team mates, guild mates, friends...

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Screaming from this hellish scene was all his body could handle, but even that cause unbelievable pain as he coughed up blood uncontrollably.

Trying to crawl over to his companions, he out stretches his left arm, but his left arm was gone, a claw wound stretched from the right end of his torso to his left shoulder blade, causing him to bleed rapidly; the only thing preventing him from noticing this unbearable pain was the numbing effect from losing his friends; he felt despair and pain… an overwhelming pain that he couldn't protect them…

"This can't be happening…

Gramps, Erza, Gajeel, levy, Lucy, Happy, Charl, Wendy, Gray, Lisanna, Mira….

Everyone...

Please get up…"

This plea was meaningless; as their bodies lie there motionless, torn apart, limbs missing and scattered around the area.

...

Moments later, a rumbling shocked him out of his despair and changed into anger and fear as the one responsible for this tragedy was about to take off from Tenrou island.

Holding his breath, he looks up at the mighty black dragon. Being out matched by this enemy was certainly far from the truth, as the Apocalypse Dragon Acnologia was the one who was before him.

With adrenaline rushing slowly through his body, the boy slowly rises to his feet and gets into a fighting stance, though just barely.

Using every ounce of his being, he prepares to fall with his guild; through a fight to the death with this monster.

"You bastard, get back down here and fight me!"

Silent as always, Acnologia stared at the island admiring his work, not even registering this sole FairyTail survivor as a threat, the dragon turned and flew away, knowing that the island was about to submerged into nothing and the vermin that he destroyed remain a short depiction of his might; looking for the next surge of chaos that beckons him.

"Damn it!"

Tears filled with frustration escape his eyes as the boy soon feels a strong haze entering his mind, his eyes loose the luster and depth, his arms become to heavy for him to hold up any longer, and his body slowly trades the warmth to a fading cold.

However the boy continues to stand firm despite the approach of death.

"Why am I so damn weak!

For what reason did I learn dragon slayer magic if I couldn't even protect a single friend!"

Looking up to the clouded sky, pain and fatigue enter his body once again.

On this day,

The sky seemed red,

as if rebuking the tragedy that happened.

The clouds were pitch black,

as if they were in remorse for the loss the boy felt.

And soon,

rain started to fall,

as if to wash away the boy's pain.

The rain that smothered his face felt like unbearable knives.

Cursing at his powerlessness and helplessness; he remembers the final moments he had with his guild mates as the warm embrace of unconsciousness welcome him.

* * *

Author Notes: Yay! summer vacation, now i time to enjoy myself with this story, hopefully these revision helps me show my plot better


	2. Chapter 2 : Resolution & time

_**DISCLAIMER: i do not own fairytail in any shape or form all of that stuff belongs to Mashima Hiro.**_

* * *

Chapter 2

Resolution and Time

"Natsu… Natsu…"

"Natsu… get up!"

Feeing a slight force moving his body, Natsu slowly awakens to Igneels voice.

"W... what? Igneel? Why are you here?"

Confusion was natural as Natsu felt his body was slowly dying at Tenrou Island.

"What are you talking about Natsu?"

"You had a nightmare. …Remember to wake up early tomorrow; we resume your training to becoming a dragon slayer."

Finishing his words the mighty fire dragon resumed his sleep enveloping the pink haired child to keep him warm.

Baffled was putting it mildly, squeezing out of Igeel's hold Natsu climbed on top of his foster father and scanned around to see the familiar scene of the forest from his childhood, the luscious green grass, the beautiful pine trees and plentiful wild life. Taking a few minutes to register in his mind, the pink haired dragon slayer realizes this is not death or an illusion but really the past. Needing confirmation the young dragon slayer shakes his foster father.

"Oi, Igneel wake up!"

Groggily reacting the sleepy dragon opens an eye.

"What's wrong Natsu?"

"Igneel what year is it?!" replied the eager dragon slayer.

"Do you not remember? It is the year x776, July 7."

"W-WHAT?!" yelled a bewildered Natsu.

'Is this really the past? Then a year from now Igneel will disappear and I will meet Master and everyone at Fairytail again?'

Unaware of the reason behind Natsu's questions the fire dragon returns to his slumber. Looking down to his hands and body for the first time, Natsu gets all the evidence he needs to convince himself this really is the past.

"Wh-what is going on?" yawned the child.

Reaching the child capacity to stay awake around this time of night, he slowly begins to daze off back to sleep.

* * *

_Early the next Morning_

Waking up to the chirping of the birds, Natsu stretches out his tired little body.

…

"That was a good nap…wait a minute, when did I fall asleep!?" Natsu shouted in disbelief to himself.

'Man... my body really did shrink…' the dragon slayer thought as he looked as his body again. 'Hmmm, I wonder if my magic power is the same as before?'

Testing out this theory, Natsu ignites his hands to see flames as large as his future counterpart.

'Have I really been sent back in the past? …grr… all this thinking is hurting my head!'

…

'Well anyway past or not I'm not letting that bastard hurt everyone again! This time I will protect everyone.'

Resolving himself to protect his guild mates Natsu goes on and tests out all of his abilities to see the extent in which his child body can handle. Attack after attack Natsu continues to displays fierce flames until collapsing from exhaustion… To his surprise all of his abilities and experiences remain the same as they were in the future and somehow he managed not to burn down that entire prairie.

"Gyhahaha! I still have all my magic power from before! If I train harder then maybe I can beat Laxus!"

"Impressive Natsu. When did you become so strong?"

Noticing for the first time, Natsu sees that Igneel has been awake and spectating his performance.

"Oh, how long have you been awake, Igneel?"

"Ah; I've been awake since the beginning; Natsu your abilities have exceeded my expectations, I would expect no less from the child of Igneel." Laughed the proud dragon.

Pondering whether or not he should tell of the _nightmare_, Natsu remains silent… After a pause he ultimately decides not to tell of his nightmare thinking it's something he must figure out himself.

Noticing Natsu's lack of reaction to the compliment and his sudden silence the fire dragon asks, "What's wrong Natsu?"

"Igneel, can you train me harder than before? I mean real training to be a true dragon slayer."

'Why would Natsu want harsher training?' thought the dragon.

Rather than asking the question, the fire dragon see's Natsu's determined face and reaches the decision.

"Hmm… Very well… With your current abilities you are ready for the next level of training…However be cautious Natsu, this level of training is not even comparable to the previous training sessions. Are you really ready for it?!"

Spoken with a certain harshness Natsu has never heard from Igneel before, silence envelopes the scenery. Unknown to Natsu, Igneels tone show his fatherly concern as the true dragon slayers training could lead to his death, even with his current display of skill.

"I'm ready for anything Igneel!"

'I will become stronger!'

"… very well, we will begin immediately!" responded the fire dragon. "You will train harder every day, do you understand?"

"I got it."

"And you will study every day as well, Natsu! No child of Igneel will be restricted to only fighting."

Sweating bullets, Natsu enthusiasm slightly drops…

"O-okay… I'll give it a try!"

…

"Now then lets' begin your training" announced the fire dragon.

"UUUUUUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHH!"

Roaring to the top of his lungs Natsu energizes himself for his training. Likewise Igneel roars to expresses how proud of his child to reach this strength at his age and to announce Natsu's training to begin.

And with that a year of intensified training was accomplished.

* * *

Author's notes: As someone pointed out, my stories are not being written the way i wanted it to be, thus everything i've written past chapter one is slightly off, so im going back and rewritting them to change it into the way i had it in my mind!

Though they still will be a little of at least it will be better so please bear with me :D


	3. Chapter 3 : Doubt and Memories

**_DISCLAIMER: i do not own fairytail in any shape or form all of that stuff belongs to Mashima Hiro._**

* * *

Chapter 3

Doubt and Memories

A few years have pass since Igneel has left, Natsu has joined with Fairytail once again. Nearly everything in Natsu's dream has played out exactly, well minus a few things, but we'll get to that some other time…

A year has passes since Lisanna's death; everybody has finally gotten over their sadness and returned to their normal routines. Natsu and Gray still bicker, Mirajane has begun to mellow out to the sweeter Mira that she will be famous for, Erza has started her iron reign over the guild making everybody afraid in her presence, Jet and Droy begin their fruitless endeavor to win Levy's affection, Levy remains oblivious, Cana has begun to unlock her drinking habit, Elfman starts his infamous catch phrase to every line he utters and Master Makarov sits there enjoying the atmosphere of his family.

…

Feeling that his daily secret training is insufficient to prepare him for the rematch with the black dragon, Natsu begins to doubt his abilities.

'At this rate am I really going to be ready to fight that dragon again?'…

The young dragon slayer has yet to show any of his guild mates his real strength, Master Makarov knows Natsu has more potential and magic power then the others believe though he doesn't understand why Natsu has yet to display those abilities. Sensing the doubt in Natsu's heart Makarov formulates an idea to see how strong the boy really is….

"Oi Natsu!"

"What is it Gramps?"

Hearing Natsu get called over, some people begin to watch the scene.

'Who should I make him fight? Erza? From what I can tell Natsu is close to her level… or maybe I should gamble on Laxus? No that idiot doesn't know how to hold back"

…

"Erza, test Natsu's capabilities." Ordered the old master.

"Why, all of the sudden?" replied the confused re-equip mage.

"Natsu's is just going to lose again, Master." Mocked Gray.

"What was that you damn exhibitionist!" retaliated the pink haired fire mage.

Butting heads once again, the master sighs.

"Enough you two! Natsu fight Erza with everything you got! If you manage to defeat her then I'll consider letting you take the s-class promotion." Declared Makarov.

"Yosh! I'm fired up!" yelled the dragon slayer. 'If I can become an S-class mage now, then I take on harder requests and fight stronger enemies.'

"Wait a minute master! That's not fair!" Gray interrupts, "Why are you only allowing Natsu to do this?"

"What are you talking about Gray? You can take on Erza too if you want." Responded the Master.

Sweating bullets the ice mage backs down "Ne-never mind…"

Brandishing a sword Erza rushes in to slash at Natsu thinking it would be an easy win, but to her surprise and everyone else's Natsu takes a side step avoid the incoming attack and retaliates with an upper cut connecting to Erza's jaw forcing her to slide across the ground.

"wh-what happen?" someone asked in disbelief.

"Oi, you brats, I didn't say to begin yet!" the Master shouted. "I don't want you two to destroy the guild; we are going to hold this fight outside!"

…

Relocating to front of the guild, nearly every person in the guild was watching to see this new turn of events.

"who do you think is going to win?" Gray asked Elfman.

"Natsu is real man but he can't win against Erza." Replied the tan giant.

Looking to his long time friend Macao smirks "I bet Natsu is going to win"

"Hah, there's no way he will win against Erza" relied Wakaba.

Ignoring all the chatter around them, Natsu and Erza concentrate on each other, waiting for the master to give the signal to begin.

"Natsu, that was a good punch earlier, but this time I won't hold back!" declared the red head.

"Bring it on Erza!" replied the excited dragon slayer. "I'll definitely beat you!"

Looking at both fighters, Makarov prepares to signal them, "Now then, Natsu, Erza, are you two ready? Begin!"

In that instance, Natsu ignites both of his hands and charges at Erza unleashing a barrage of punches. Barely blocking each punch, Erza sees an opening and kicks Natsu's side causing him to lose his breath. Not letting this opportunity slide, Erza rushes in and unleashes a volley of slashes leaving Natsu no time to recover. Flaring fire all over his body, Erza is caught by surprise and leaps back. After this exchange, cheering from the guild can be heard supporting Natsu and Erza as well as astonishment at the display of Natsu's abilities they never seen before.

'Damn it, this is tough. I better get a little more serious. I doubt that flare will work again…'

"Not bad Natsu, you're doing a lot better than a few years ago" stated the impressed Erza, "but this level won't be enough to defeat me!"

Rushing towards Natsu once again Erza slashes at Natsu but this time he grabs the sword, within seconds the sword starts to melt in his hand. Releasing the sword, Erza quickly jumps back. Seizing this opportunity Natsu quickly peruses and punches Erza a few times in the chest before doing a round house kick, sending the re-equip mage a few feet back.

"D-Damn it" muttered the red head as she recovers from the slide and quickly summoning another sword.

Hearing Natsu's footsteps Erza slashes behind her, only to have Natsu grab her sword again. However, Erza quickly lets go of her sword and grabs Natsu's arm.

"I've got you now!" Erza yelled.

Holding firmly on the dragon slayer Erza unleashes a barrage of punches, Natsu releases the sword in his hand and rams into the guild's outer wall.

"Shit, that hurt" the dragon slayer utters after spitting some blood from his mouth.

'hmm… Natsu, are really giving it your all?' thought the guild master

…

"A-amazing, to think Erza would be this evenly matched with Natsu…" Mirajane stated in astonishment.

"They're both really worn out, Master who do you think will win this fight?" questioned Cana.

"I don't know, but in any case this is a good fight." Laughed the Master.

Though inspecting closer one could find that Erza looked a little worn out while Natsu seemed only a little winded. Taking a deep breath Natsu begins to accumulate his magic power.

Feeling the sudden increase in magic the swordswomen charges in, "I'm not going to let that happen!"

However it was too late, reaching a certain capacity the dragon slayer shouts

"Roar of the Fire Dragons!"

Seeing the fire move at a speed and size that was never seen before, Erza is unable to escape in time

"Shit!"

Quickly shifting into a defensive position, the attack did less made contact. Though the spell didn't do as much damage as she expected a lot of smoke was created. After the smoke cleared from the surroundings, Erza quickly scans around for the pink haired boy.

"Damn it, where is he?"

Seeing the shadow beneath her getting larger the re-equip mage realizes the fire attack was a distraction so he could jump to the sky. This realization however was too slow as the dragon slayer quickly descends, grabbing onto the back of her head and slammed it into the ground. Due to the momentum gathered from his height, the force of the attack created a small crater…

'That's it for her…' thought the master.

Taking a deep breath, Natsu grins "that was fun Erza, lets fight again some other time."

Coughing up some blood, the red head struggles to get back on her feet, "w-wait a minute Natsu. This fight isn't over yet…"

Erza has reached her limit, everyone noticed, everyone but Erza herself or rather she was too stubborn to accept defeat.

"That's enough Erza, the winner is Natsu." The master said decisively.

A bit disappointed by her defeat Erza loses all the tension left in her body and falls on one knee. 'When did Natsu get so strong?'…

Hearing the boy's voice, Erza breaks away from her train of thoughts.

"Oi, are you okay Erza? Can you stand?" Natsu said offering a helping hand.

"I'm fine Natsu, but with this you can take the S-class promotion, congratulations."

Grabbing his hand, Erza stands up just to fall into Natsu's arms. 'I'm more damaged than I thought…'

…

..

.

"well isn't this a lovely sight~" remarked Macao.

"ah~ to be young and in love~" commented Wakaba

Hearing the laughter of the guild, Erza tune back in, to realize their comments were directed at them. And almost instantly the re-equip mage departs from Natsu's arms, feeling her cheeks being slightly warm she takes her leave...

"I'll see you later Natsu…" Erza said rather rushed.

"Yeah"

Natsu however doesn't quite understand the comments and only raises a brow. "So, what are you guys talking about?"

Feeling the sweat drop from their heads, everyone in the guild remembers, that this pink haired boy is still innocent in many ways or rather just very dense...

"Ahem… Natsu, now that you past this little test, you are now qualified for the next s-class test. You better be prepared for it!" announced the guild master. "But, for now at least, lets' celebrate Natsu's test being a success!"

And with that everyone cheered for Natsu's accomplishment for not only defeating one of their strongest mages but the possibility of him becoming one of their elite mages…

* * *

_Later that same day in the dead of night…_

_-in Natsu's room-_

Tossing around in his, the boy sweats profusely, murmuring in fear and desperation…

"s-stop it you bastard… l-leave them alone…"

In this nightmare, a crimson red floods everything in sight then fades to black; ghosts of his allies appear before him taunting him of his weakness...

'why, why didn't you stop him… why did you let us die!' shouted Lucy.

'why Natsu, Dragon slayers were meant to defeat dragons so why didn't you defeat this dragon!' yelled Erza.

Turning their backs to him, he reaches his hands out, 'w-wait, everyone! This time I'll stop him I swear!'

Nearly grabbing on to one of his allies back only to fade from his hands, the dragon slayer falls to his knees in remorse and sadness.

…

Waking up from the dream, a lone tear falls out of his eye.

"Damn it! ... I need to train harder… no at this rate this level of training isn't enough..."

Lamenting over his dream, Natsu thinks back to Lisanna, her supposed death, hurt everyone again, and like before he couldn't protect her…

* * *

Author notes: well i tried to leave this chapter like a cliff hanger mostly because i got too lazy to include this flash back so i'll include that in the next chapter


	4. Chapter 4 : Failure and Promise-beta ver

**_DISCLAIMER: i do not own fairytail in any shape or form all of that stuff belongs to Mashima Hiro._**

* * *

Chapter 4

Failure and Promise

_ Year x782._

_The sun has begun to set, leaving a crimson sky over head._

_Lying down under a nearby tree by the front of FairyTail, Natsu is exhausted as he forces himself beyond his limit and more, each training session. _

_"Hey Natsu, why do you train so hard when nobody is looking?" asked a blue cat that lies next to him._

_"What are you talking about Happy, if I don't train how am I going to stronger." Replied the pink haired dragon slayer catching his breath._

_"I understand, but still! Why do you train to this point? You're full of scratches and you almost died again…" responded the worried cat._

_"Don't worry; I won't die from this…"_

_Ending the conversation, Natsu feels his entire body sore, fatigued, and unable to really move. Taking his mind from his pain he wonders what day it is, how much time does he have left until the face off, has he really gotten strong enough to protect anyone? … All of these questions unanswered soon become faded with the appearance of a white haired girl…_

_"Oi, Natsu, Happy!" called the white haired girl._

_"Oh? Its Lisanna!" called Happy joyfully._

_"Oh, Lisanna, what's up?" Natsu asked as he leaves his thoughts._

_"Mira-nee asked me to join her s-rank mission" boasted the white haired girl, "… What happen Natsu? ! What's how did you get all those scratches!"_

_"ah… its nothing" dismissing the subject, Natsu thinks about what Lisanna just said, 'S-rank mission…wait a minute… that means… Damn it how could I forget what today was… '_

_"So, this mission… is it an emergency suppression mission?"_

_"eeh? How did you know?" responded the surprise teen._

_"Huh? Uh… lucky guess…" rather shaky with his reply, Natsu fights the fatigue and pain his body is telling him and gets up. Grabbing Lisanna shoulders, Natsu looks dead into her eyes causing her to blush slightly._

_"Huh… what's wrong Natsu…" asked the rather blushed girl._

_"Lisanna, can I join in this mission."_

_"eh…? A-ask Mira-nee…me and Elf-nii are just supports…" replied Lisanna looking over to a nearby tree._

_Following Lisanna's gaze, Natsu sees both Elfman and Mirajane standing by the tree with a rather mischievous grin on their faces._

_"So, Natsu are you going to stand there like that or are you going to kiss her" Mira chided._

_Noticing the looks of Mira, Elfman and the now airborne Happy and processing Mira's comment, Natsu starts to realize that he is holding Lisanna rather closely and dare I say intimately, given that someone just walked passed them would think so…_

_"uh, sorry" replied the pink haired boy, letting go of Lisanna with a face kind of flushed._

_'Tch, and it was such a good mood~' thought Mirajane._

_Breaking the awkward atmosphere Natsu re-asks his earlier question._

_"So, Mira, can I join the mission to?" Natsu asked with a serious tone, possibly to try and hide his earlier blush._

_"eh? What a coincidence, I was going to ask you to join anyways." _

_"wait a minute, I'm against it nee-chan, a man should be able to protect his own family" interject Elfman._

_"I understand Elfman, but I'm worried about my friends, so let me tag along!" Natsu counter argued._

_Feeling a slight blush across her face again Lisanna teases, "Jeez Natsu, are you worried Happy's Mama will be hurt?"_

_Taken by surprise by this statement Natsu tries to retaliate, "Wh-What?! Th-that's not it I'm just worried about all of you going on this mission an-and…" _

_Interrupting this exchange Happy says his infamous line, "She Liiiiiiiikkkkkkkkkeeessss you~"_

_"Shut up Happy!" yelled Natsu. _

_…_

_Holding the blush on his face he pesters further, "Mira, can I come on this mission please, I'll do anything!"_

_Seeing the determination in his eyes the demon soul user can't deny him the request._

_"If you're going to such an extent, fine you can come along~" smirked the demon user, "However do not forget what you just said." _

_ With those words Mira laughs loudly and obnoxiously and the Strauss trio begins to walk to off. Following after them, Natsu feels a shiver down his spine as he reluctantly begins wonders what Mira is going to make him do after the mission has been completed… _

_And with that the group takes off to the village leaving Mira's mischievous laughter echoing across town to signal their departure._

* * *

_Later that day_

_Night has descended across the world, but the flames of the nearby village have brightened the sky. The beast has terrorized the town blazing it to the ground, amidst the burning town Lisanna has been ordered by Mirajane to evacuate all the citizens, while she, Natsu and Elfman put a stop to the beast. The battle is fierce, the trio manages to injure the beast through a combined effort, however Mira suffers a lot of damage and is left unable to move, concerned for his sister Elfman is reluctant to leave her side but also can't allow Natsu to fight on his own._

_"ELFMAN! Stay by Mira's side, leave the rest to me!" shouted the dragon slayer._

_"B-but Natsu! You can't take that monster on your own, it took all three of us to get this far!" replied Elfman._

_"I'm fine, Elfman but you have to get Lisanna and Natsu away from here, we can't win like this" Mira said weakly_

_"nee-chan…" torn between fighting with Natsu or protect his sister Elfman is deciding on something risky… 'if I can take over that beast, then we may have a chance to win this…'_

_"ELFMAN! Don't you dare take of that beast!" Natsu interjected Elfman's thoughts._

_Shocked by his declaration, Elfman wonders 'how did Natsu know what I was going to do…!?'\_

_…_

_"Oi, you ugly monster, face me and fight!" mocked the pink haired fighter._

_Getting the beast's attention, Natsu ignites his fist; alas he knows his magic has yet to recover from his training session earlier, and to damage the beast so far he's used almost all of his power already… 'Damn it! I need to weaken it so Elfman can take over it later… before Lisanna comes back…'_

_"ALL MAGIC POWER RELEASE!" shouting to the top of his lungs, Natsu engages the beast into a showdown. _

_The gigantic beast swipes down at Natsu but misses, the fire mage climbs onto the beasts arm and releases all of his flames into his hands, delivering a barrage of burning punch. Find this an annoyance the monster grabs hold of Natsu and slams him down to the ground, creating a large crater where his body landed. Coughing out blood, Natsu quickly recovers and avoids the beast's foot coming down to crush his body._

_'damn it… no effect…'_

_Pulled from his thoughts, Natsu avoids incoming rocks and trees the monster throws at him. Feeling the pain from his earlier crash, Natsu is dulled a second, resulting in a rock crashing him into a tree, giving the monster just enough time to run to him and grab his leg to thrash him around like a rag doll._

_"NATSU! ARE YOUPLANNING ON DIEING! GET AWAY FROM HIM! YOU DON'T HAVE ANY MAGIC POWER LEFT! " shouting to the top of her lungs, Mira starts to tremble as she see's Natsu body being flung all over the place. 'I can't move a finger… Damn it!'_

_Next to Mira, Elfman is also trembling but in anger as he is unable to do anything but trust Natsu's decision and wait until the right moment where he can take over the monster… but this thrashing was the last line."You bastard! Let go of Nastu!"_

_Ignoring elfman's shout the beast continues to thrash Natsu around until finally feeling satisfied with the damage he caused. Throwing the boy into the forest and breaking several trees until finally falling to the ground the beast turns to face the siblings. Blood dripping everywhere, the pink haired fighter is laying face down with a numb sensation all over his body, however with even the slightest movement will give a hellish pain of shock as several ribs were broken and his left leg dislocated…_

_Looking to the side, through his fogged up vision Natsu can see the beast making his way to Mirajane and Elfman, 'shit… this isn't good, I can't really move, and I'm out of magic… I…I can't stop now… I need to protect everybody…'_

_Struggling to his feet, blood drips from his temple, shoulder, legs and every other open wound. Fending off the pain, Natsu slowly makes his way to his friends limping and clutching is left arm and leg. "You bastard get back here and fight me!"_

_Was the best he could say, but even that provocation was only a meager comment that only he could hear._

_…_

_As the beast approached Elfman and Mira, Elfman stands before the monster and attempts to take over the beast only to result in failure as it healed the beast's wounds and leaves him under the beasts control, however the beast is seemingly immobile for the moment. Making her way to the battlefield Lisanna has finally finished evacuating all the citizens of the local village to find her sister wounded fairly badly and Natsu and her brother missing._

_"Mira-nee! Where is Elf-niichan and Natsu?" asked the girl, looking into the unresponsive monster._

_"Natsu… Natsu tried to fight the beast alone, and he was thrown somewhere… Elfman… he tried to protect me and ended up being taken over by the beast…"_

_"W-what?! Th-then…"_

_Thinking of the situation, Lisanna hid away her concern for the dragon slayer as well as the possibility that he may be seriously injured, to get her brother back his senses first. 'Natsu, please be safe'_

_Walking towards the king of beasts, Lisanna attempts to bring her brother back to his senses, "what's wrong elf-niichan? Don't you recognize me? It's me, your little sister Lisanna. And over there is Mira-nee"_

_Seeing her attempt, Mira shouts, "Lisanna! Stay away from him!"_

_Grunting and moaning, the beast stays immobile. Making her way to the beast, Lisanna continues her attempt to help her brother gain control. _

_…_

_Inching past the tree's behind Lisanna, Natsu has finally reached back to the battle field to see, 'Lisanna?! N-no, sh-she can't be here!' _

_"LISANNA GET AWAY FROM HIM!" shouting with all his being, Natsu desperately tries everything in his power to get closer to Lisanna._

_This effort was futile however, as the beast roars and quickly raises his arm and swipes the girl halfway across the forest…_

_"LIIISSSSSSSSSAAAAAANNNNNNAAA AAAAAA!" screamed Mira full of anguish._

_Shortly after this final attack, Elfman finally gains control over the beast only to fall unconscious…_

_Dropping to his knees the pink haired fighter shouts to the top of his lungs, "DAMN IT!"_

_… rain soon starts to fall, almost as if to laminate this scene. Crawling to the spot Lisanna was sent to; Mira and Natsu hover over her body... looking gravely over her body Natsu remains silent as Mira desperately tries to heal her sister._

_Fighting back tears, Mira tries to get her sister to stay conscious, "Oi Lisanna! Hold on, I'll heal you, don't worry… you'll be alright…" _

_To her surprise, Lisanna's body soon is enveloped in a faint golden light, remembering from what Mira said, Natsu knew Lisanna would soon be sent to edolas…_

_ "Hey…Natsu…"_

_Holding down tears for failing to protect this girl in front of him, the boy tries his best to give her a warm goodbye._

_"What is it Lisanna?"_

_"I feel a little sleepy… so when … I wake up… lets… go fishing with Happy again…okay?"_

_"Yeah..." Natsu replied weakly…"… I promise we will…"_

_"Oh… and tell Mira-nee… and Elf-nii, thanks for l…letting me join this mission…"_

_Hearing the tears of Mira, all Natsu could do was nod in response. Mira holds desperately onto her sister's body in an attempt to keep her from fading, alas the light soon scatters thus resulting in Lisanna's body vanishing along with it…_

_'I'll definitely find you again' swearing to himself; Natsu watches the light carry his friend to the other world letting Mira's cries ring throughout the rain signaling the end of this mission…_

* * *

Author's Notes: okay finally done with this, i did very little proof reading so i may have a lot of mistakes here and there, but i'll address that later. YAY! finally i can start the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5 : Friends and Journey-beta

_**DISCLAIMER: i do not own fairytail in any shape or form, all of that stuff belongs to Mashima Hiro.**_

* * *

Chapter 5

Friends and a Journey

Year x783

_-Natsu's house, Night time-_

Zoning back from reminiscing the night of Lisanna's death; Natsu stares at the ceiling and confirms to himself that his current self training is lacking…

"Damn it, what can I do…" muttering quietly to himself not to wake his blue companion.

'I've trained so hard… yet I still couldn't save Lisanna back then…' gripping his hand with a lot of force; the boy goes deep in thought, way deeper than he could before; thanks to Igneel's and Erza's special educational training but reaches no conclusion, Natsu comes to a standstill, 'Guess there's no choice… I'll ask gramps or e-e-erza for special t-training…'

Stuttering in his mind, Natsu remembers when Erza gave him a rather strict crash course on mages and Fiore. 'Maybe I should just ask gramps only…'

Ending with those thoughts for the night, Natsu falls back to sleep hoping tomorrow Master Makarov could help him get stronger, and hopefully Erza isn't upset from the dual earlier today.

-_The next morning-_

With the sun beaming through the windows, both Natsu and Happy sluggishly fumble out of their bed. Finding clothes, washing up, and other daily routines; the duo make their way through the scrapes and garbage that's laid out all over the floor and exits their home.

Making their way to the guild, Happy remembers the ordeal from yesterday.

"Hey, Natsu, are you going to be ready for the s-class test?"

"Huh? I'll pass the test with flying colors! Then I'll beat up Laxus and Gildarts and then I'll be strongest in FairyTail! GYHAHAHAHA!"

Feeling a sweat drop the blue cat silently listens to his friend's mischievous laugh, though with a bit of concern.

…

Arriving at the guild, Natsu and Happy are welcomed with cheers and enthusiasm, more so than usual at least, most likely due to the exciting fight yesterday as well as the party. Walking up to the counter where Mira was cleaning bar cups, Natsu gives her a toothy grin.

"Yo, Mira is gramps here?

"Eh? Master? Hmm… I think he's still up stairs."

"Tch, guess I'll wait for him then" a little disappointed and bored, Natsu looks over to his side to see Erza staring at him rather intensely while eating a strawberry cake… 'Huh… did I do something wrong …?' feeling a sweat drop, Natsu looks over to his other side expecting to see Happy but instead see's Cana staring at her drink a bit dazed and depressed.

'hm? Whats wrong with Cana? … wait a minute, where's Happy?!'

Scanning round, Natsu see's the blue cat over by Erza sleeping, along with a half eaten fish in his mouth… 'hmm, that's strange… we just woke up…' feeling a bit of a shiver down his spine, the boy shakes it off and walks over to Cana.

"Yo Cana! What's wrong, you look down."

Not expecting the sudden voice, Cana falls over in her chair.

"HUH?!"

Looking over at the fallen girl Natsu offers a hand, "Oi, you okay?"

Looking up, Cana see's the voice that caused her fall but accepts the hand anyway.

"Thanks"

Pulling her up, Natsu remembers the tear wrenching scene where she reveals to Gildarts that she is his daughter; however that moment of bliss was cut short due to the King of Dragons... a sudden impulse hits the boy as he starts to formulate a plan to help the girl reveal her secret to her clueless father; most likely so the two can have a better reunion than the last; well at least when he comes back in a years.

"Hey, Cana, can I talk to you later?"

Caught by surprise by this sudden request, Cana takes a moment to ponder what this could be about, since this pink haired boy rarely, if ever, talks to her. . . . Unable to figure what the dragon slayer may be thinking (not a surprise) she answers hesitantly.

"… Okay…"

"Meet me out in front of the guild after the sun sets." replied the pink haired boy with a wide smile.

With that Natsu turns around to see Erza staring at him even more intensely while forking down another new cake slower than the last… needing a distraction, the boy looks slightly to the right to see Mira who's wiping a cup rather slowly for some reason and also looking at him intensively... feeling a sweating a drop again; the boy looks back at the redhead and ponders why the re-equip mage is glaring at him so much . . . coming up with nothing he decides to confront to her.

Noticing Natsu's advancement to the redhead some of the guild members nonchalantly look at the tense atmosphere to see what will happen while other pretend to be distracted in their respective activities while secretly listening intently on what the conversation may be about.

"Erza! Do you need something from me?"

"Eh? No not really" the girl replied looking away from the dragon slayer.

"Then, why are you glaring at me like that!" complained the boy.

"I-I'm not; I was just thinking about something!" replied the redhead rather quickly.

All of the guild members viewing felt a sweat drop as the re-equip mage was staring at the boy rather intensely… though her not realizing this was part of her nature I guess.

A little unconvinced the pink haired boy suddenly notices something. "Hmm? Erza… could it be…"

Upon uttering those words, the dragon mage peers closer until he is but five inches from the redhead's face.

'huh?! … wha-what is he doing!' thought the re-equip mage, not noticing her face turning red as her hair.

Holding this position for a good minute, others start to whisper and gossip over the scene that is unfolding.

"Oi, Oi, first he beats her in combat, now he's going to win her heart?" someone whispered to another.

Looking over to his friend, Macao is sweating bullets, "Wh-what do you think Natsu is doing?"

"D-Don't know, but its _**Natsu**__, _there's no way he's into anything besides fighting; is he?" replied an unsure Wakaba.

Sitting at the bar, Elfman is a little speechless as he was talking to his sister after Natsu went to talk to Cana, though her responses were a little vague. Noticing the guild suddenly gotten quiet, he turns around and sees that everyone was looking at a particular area with their mouths wide open. Following their gaze, Elfman also drops his jaw in surprise as it looked like Natsu was kissing Erza. Hearing a glass drop near him, Elfman manages to tear his sight from the duo and sees a rather dark aura emitting from his sister. "n-n-n-nee-chan…?"

…

Mira was cleaning her cups happily though a bit slower ever since Natsu gave her that goofy grin, before leaving to talk to Cana. Her little brother sat down to talk about something; most likely of his newest job and what occurred, however most of the discussion was going in one ear but out the other as she was watching the pink haired boy's conversation with the card mage. Not realizing she was actually leering at the boy for the entire conversation, once Natsu was done talking and looked over to her, she felt embarrassed and looked away. 'Huh…? Why am I looking at Natsu all of a sudden…?'

Taking a moment to process what's happening to herself but figuring out nothing; the demon soul mage looks back at where the fire mage was standing before only to see Cana looking across the guild to another table with a rather shocked expression and her drink spilling on the ground. Following her gaze, Mira sees Natsu slowly leaning towards Erza to what looked like a kiss. . . . Then all of a sudden, unbeknown to her, a dark aura was outlining around her body. 'wh-what is this irritating feeling …!'

…

"hmm… as I thought, your face is a little red, do you have a fever or something?" asked Natsu before starting to get even closer to touch her forehead with his.

Noticing his action, Erza pushes his face away with a bit of extra force than necessary. "I-I'm fine."

'wh-what's wrong with me. Why is my heart pounding so much?' thought the re-equip mage.

"hm… then that's fine, bu-"

Before finishing his sentence the dragon slayer notices the master sitting on the bar looking rather amused.

"Ah Gramps! I need to talk to you!"

Forgetting all about the confrontation, the boy walks over to the master. Sadly the moment between the two teens has ended; some of the guild mates feel a bit disappointed as the mood was getting interesting, others were expecting something like that, since the boy has no romantic inclinations as far as they were aware at least.

'tch~ and it was getting amusing' thought the master. "So? What do you need to talk about Natsu?"

With a determined look and strong voice the boy declares, "Gramps, can you help me get stronger!"

Shocking everybody once again, this statement seemed outrageous as this boy bested one of their best mages with relative ease, some even would argue that the fire mage would be a match for the cocky thunder dragon slayer, possibly even Gildarts.

'Hmm…' thinking to himself the old master peers deep into the boy's face and sees beneath his determination there is an impatience to get stronger; at least more so than usual. Why is he trying so hard to get strong? Looking deeper the master can see a slight hint of fear, but fear of what?

Making a deep sigh the old master reaches a decision. "No. I cannot train you Natsu."

"EH!? Why gramps!?"

"As guild master I cannot pick favorites, and Natsu, dragon slayer magic is still a mystery to the world. There is few in the world, to become stronger is something you must figure out on your own."

Seeing the boy a bit disappointed the master thinks of a suggestion on a whim, "But, if you're that determined; train your body! Having only strong magic is useless if you do not have the body to handle it!"

"Then, you'll train me!?" asked the pink haired boy enthusiastic again.

"Nope~ for this matter ask Mira or Erza, both of them have been S-class mages for some time and have been on all sorts of tough requests. Though you bested Erza yesterday, she still is stronger than you in other ways."

Cold sweat began to run down the boy's body as he felt two murderous intents focus on him for some reason… "O-O-Okay, if you say so gramps. "

In a few seconds, a hand grabs the boy's collar and starts to drag him away. In a panic the boy turns to see its Erza… "E-Erza-san… wh-what are you doing?"

A bit puzzled by the words the redhead turns to face him while continuing to drag him through the guild.

"Can't you tell from looking? We're going to train." Replied the re-equip mage in a tone that seemed like her actions were obvious.

"w-w-w-wait a minute! I haven't decided yet!" shouted the scared boy as his face started to pale.

"Don't be shy, Now then, let's go train!"

Making her through most of the guild hall, only one person stands in front of her.

"Wait a minute, Erza, Master said either of us could help Natsu train, so let me." Stated Mira

"Its fine Mirajane, You haven't been on a mission for a year. **I'll do it**" the redhead declared with a little authority in her tone near the end.

Not willing to back down, Mira gives her usual smile and replies with a bit of power in her voice.

"Don't worry Erza, leave Natsu's training to me, **you're still hurt from you duel yesterday right?"**

Starting to feel a bit irritated, the redhead pops a vein "I said I would do it."

"No, I'll do it."

Confused as to why these s-class mages were butting heads the dragon slayer starts to feel more and more frightened. '… I-I need to escape!' Slowly the boy slips through his waist coat and starts to crawl away.

Noticing his feeble attempt to escape the ladies stop their bickering and look at him with death glares.

"Natsu! Which one of us do you want to train with?"

'wh-wh-what is wrong with them?!' thought the freighted boy. Unable to decide, the he looks back and forth and is in a pickle as both were scary options for different reasons.

Cold sweat ran through most of the guild members, as this is a situation most men would dream of but at the same time, wish they were never in. Ironically enough, they weren't expecting their own fire mage of all people, to be in this predicament. At Natsu's expense, everyone continued to watch this entertaining event while also giving condolence for the clueless boy.

'… at this rate the brat won't even make it to training…' needing to do something for the boy, the master decides on a compromise for him. "Erza! Mira! Both of you will train him together. Got it?!"

Feeling his face go paler, the boy looked at the girls once again to see that, though there is still some amnesty, they agree on this decision. 'I-I-I'm going to die… I'm definitely going to die…'

Sighing to himself, the master remembers one more thing. "Oi Natsu, while training with them make sure you are completely out of magic, else the training is meaningless."

"SOMEBODY SAVE ME!~~~~"

With those words ringing throughout the guild, the gals drag him out of the guild to a training sight in the mountains. On lookers could only feel pity for the boy and silently pray for his survival.

* * *

_-In Natsu's house. Night time-_

The boy has finally finished his tutelage under the two mages and is exhaustedly lying on his bed.

"Oi, Natsu, are you okay?"

Turning to his side to see his flying blue friend looking at him with concern, he gives his usual goofy smile as reassurance, "I'm fine!"

Brightening up by the response, Happy smiles in astonishment, "I didn't think you could survive that training with no magic."

"…hehehe..hehe… me too…"

Remembering back in horror, by early morning Natsu had to fight both the two s-rank mages in full power while he couldn't use any of his magic. This regime gave good training to him physically while it also helped Mira regain some of her weaken power back and also help Erza improve her abilities as well. After a good day of endless fighting, Erza would take him on a tough s-class mission ass her support and only allowed him to use a third of his magic to deal with threats, but even that resulted in huge explosions all over cities and towns. Once the request was fulfilled; the duo would go back to the mountains with Mira and continue their training again. By the end of it all, three months flew by.

"Natsu…

…Natsu…

…. NATSU!" Happy shouted.

Snapping back from his horrible memory the boy falls from his bed. "HUH!? … What is it Happy?"

"You weren't listening were you?"

"huh… what were you talking about?"

Taking a deep sigh, "S-class exam, remember? Its next year."

"Ah, I see. Well then let's go on an adventure Happy!" the dragon slayer proclaims in excitement.

"EH?! Why?!" responded the cat in shock.

With a grin the boy explains his plan, "Well, all the training I did with Erza and Mira was good and all, but it didn't really help my magic power. So let's go on an adventure and get stronger together!"

Pondering for a moment the cat is hesitant to agree.

"Besides, we might hear some rumors of Igneel and there are people I want to meet."

"Eh? People you want to meet? Who?"

Getting ahead of himself, the fire mage accidentally thinks aloud and lists some names "Uh… Wendy and Charl… and…"

Confused, Happy has never seen nor heard of anyone by those names. "Hey, Natsu, Who are those people?"

Feeling sweat drop from his face, the boy quickly tries to cover up as they actually have yet to meet. "Uh…Eh… I heard of them on a mission with Erza, and I want to meet them…"

"Anyway let's go Happy, there might be all kinds of fish on the trip too~" adding the last comment slyly, Natsu tries to dodge the question.

"Aye! Let's go Natsu!~" cheered the cat, forgetting completely about his earlier inquisition.

Mischievously laughing to himself for successfully convincing his blue partner to join him in his trip, the two pack up all the things they think they'll need for the trip and leave the house.

"But, is it really okay to go without saying anything Natsu?"

"Its fine~ besides I already left a note for Gramps when I finished training today."

Taking one last look at the city, the two begin their adventure into the world.

* * *

_-At the guild-_

Making his way to his office, the old man notices a piece of paper on the desk. "Hm? What's this?"

_To Gramps,_

_Happy and I are going on a trip! Don't worry, we'll be back later~_

_Don't tell anyone_

_See you later~_

-_Natsu _

…

..

.

Within seconds multiple veins become clearly visible as the short master starts getting enraged. "THAT IDIOT! WHAT IS HE THINKING?!"

…

Taking a deep sigh the master notices something rather odd… 'Wait a second… when did he learn to write?!'

'Well whatever, I'll let him do as he pleases for now. Besides he already caused enough damage with Erza during their missions!'

Getting worked up from remembering the utter destruction the duo caused on their mission which in turn gave him an unbelievable amount of complaints from the magic council, Makarov takes another deep breathe to calm himself. 'Guess I'll look forward to see how strong his magic will become.'

* * *

_The next day at FairyTail_

Everyone continues with their daily routine, though everyone feels something is missing, something pink, something loud, and something that causes trouble, but they can't seem to figure out what it is….

"Something seems a bit off…" declared Macao.

"You're right, but what is it?" responded Wakaba

As everyone ponders over what could be missing, a brief silence encompasses the guild…

Breaking the silence Mira realizes, "Ara? Where's Natsu?"

Noticing for the first time, everyone in the guild start to realize how quiet the guild is without the pink haired trouble maker.

"Maybe that idiot got lost on his way here" remarked Gray.

"Ara? Gray? You're back? Remarked Mira.

Nodding in response; the ice mage is curious where the pink haired boy is as he left on a mission right after duel with Erza occurred. Watching the duel he felt a frustrated as Natsu seemed to be on a different level. Though the mission took a whole three months, it was worth the pain as he managed to get stronger.

"Don't say things like that." Replied a worried Erza.

"… Don't get too worried, I'm sure he's fine." Stated the old Master

Feeling some reassurance, most of the members return to their usual activities though a little quieter than they are use to. However some were not convinced with the Master's statement.

It is now evening at Fairytail, and Erza seems to be restless, as she is worried about Natsu's absence. No longer able to bear it any longer, she goes to Makarov, hoping for some answers.

"Master, do you know where Natsu is?"

"No clue…" replied the Master quickly.

"How suspicious…" Erza responds while staring the Master accusingly.

"Stare~~"

Cold sweat engulfed the master as he turns his head away from the redhead to find that Gray and Mira also staring at him…

'Oh no… I can't tell them the truth…. What can I do… what can I do…'

"….I really don't know where Natsu is!" declared the panicked guild master.

_Two days Later~_

"Master do you know where Natsu is today?" Mira asked.

"I think he went to look for Igneel." Replied the distracted Master.

"aree~? I thought you didn't know where Natsu was." Gray voiced in a mocking tone.

Shocked, the Makarov finds himself in a trap….

"So then, if you know that Natsu is looking for Igneel, then do you know when he will be back?" interject Erza

"Uh…um.. I don't know when Natsu will be back…"

"Oh really? Then why didn't you know where he went yesterday?" Erza pressured

"Uh…eh… th-that's because…."

"I-I'm old! That's right; I'm getting quite old now so it's harder to remember things now." The master replied a bit shaky.

Not sounding very convinced Erza looks at the old master with a scary glare. "Really?"

"That's right, just trust him, you girls trained him right?"

"….Fine, I'll leave it at that for today." A bit startled by the comment, the equip mage stops her interrogation and goes back to the request board to find a mission.

…

"WHAT?! Erza trained Natsu?!" shouted the out raged ice mage.

"I trained him too" interjected Mira with a pouting face.

Shouting to the top of his lungs, the ice mage is shocked beyond words, "EHH!? What did I miss!?"

Needing to compensate, the black haired youth revs himself to take more and more requests to get stronger. "I'M DEFINITELY NOT GOING TO LOSE TO THAT FLAME BRAIN!"

Finally let off the hook Makarov sits comfortingly on the bar table. Though today was a close call, the old master must continue the charade until their rambunctious dragon slayer returns. How is he going to keep this up?

'I can't keep this up forever. Natsu, hurry up and return!'

* * *

Author's Note: sorry this chapter took so long~

writing out Mira and Erza's scene was harder than i thought.


	6. Chapter 6 : Welcome home Part 1

_**DISCLAIMER: i do not own FairyTail in any shape or form, all of that stuff belongs to Mashima Hiro.**_

**Chapter 6**

**Welcome Home!**

Sitting down at a bar counter wearing a stripped jester hat, orange jack covering his white shirt and orange pants; an old man renown as one of the ten saints and master of the strongest guild in Fiore, FairyTail; Makarov Dreyer, sits atop a bar counter and releases a deep sign as he peers around the guild. Looking from table to table, nearly every person he spotted was either in a glum state or had a bored, unresponsive and down right dead look.

'... What to do? I expected Natsu to return by now… but… from the looks of things I need to do something… No, he did say he would come back on his own, I need to believe he'll be back… but at this rate...'

Though the he did tell everyone that the boy would return in time, as the days turned into weeks and the weeks into months, everyone started to be restless and they began to think something was amiss with the missing dragon mage. In result, now, the old master has noticed the cheery Mirajane has been smiling less or rather distracted, sad, and often daydream with a sour expression; one could guess she was thinking about the missing boy's safety and possible return. Elfman would take on jobs regularly; but once he returned, he often stay by his sister's side and talk with her in hopes she'll cheer up again while trying to hide a glum face himself; as if each mission was an excuse to look for the boy but ended up in failure. Erza and Gray have also been keeping themselves busy, too busy; returning to the guild once every so month only to do another request that's even harder then the last. Even the alcoholic Cana was affected by Natsu's disappearance as the master noticed her excessive drinking has increased exponentially since his disappearance.

Hearing the chatter of the guild, the old man delves out of his thoughts to see what all the noise was about. Making out two figured in the crowd of people in front, the first being a firmly built dark haired youth, who uses creation ice magic and also has a rather extreme habit of stripping down to his underwear and as promised is currently wearing nothing but his underwear; Gray Fullbuster. The next being a red haired women who uses re-equip magic and as expected is currently wearing armor protecting her torso, blue skirt and dark boots. Known as the strongest female mage in FairyTail, Erza Scarlet or also known as Fairy Queen Titania Erza.

"Ooohh, Welcome back you two." greeted the master.

"Ah, we're back Master" replied the redhead.

"off to take another job?"

Pausing for a moment, Erza brings her slender hand to her chin and ponders for a moment.

"No, I think I'll rest for today"

*** """"""EEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"""""" ***

Nearly turning the guild upside down, everyone screamed in surprise.

Fighting the urge to scream in surprise as well, cold sweat makes its way down the back of his semi bald head.

As if in an attempt to rid himself of shock, Makarov coughs lightly.

"Wh-why so suddenly?"

"Hm? No reason. I just wanted to rest a little. Is that a problem?"

A bit dense to the guild's reaction, the red head knits her brows in an arch and tilts her head slightly in wonder.

"N-No, Well, take a good rest."

"How about you Grey? Are you going on another job?" asked the master as he set his sights from the girl.

"Nah, I think I'm going to take it easy today too"

Replied the blue haired teen with a sigh of exhaustion.

"I-I see..."

was all the words the master could form, as he is left flabbergasted but the unexpected events.

'Geez, getting hit by these surprises isn't good for my health'

Not only has these two been going on missions non stop for the past few months, but both of them have suddenly decided to take a break now! What in the world is happening?!

After being dismissed by the old master, Erza and Grey sit down ordering Cake and a drink respectively; relaxing for the first time for who knows how long.

Unknowingly shocking everyone in the guild as people started to gossip.

(I can't believe it! In these nine months this is the first time I've heard of them taking a break!)

(Yeah! Usually they leave as soon as they get back!)

(What in the world is going to happen?!)

...

Amongst the excitement and gossip, a lone statement managed to be heard by the entire guild.

"If Erza and Grey are taking a break th-then maybe Natsu really will come back."

...

*_**Silence engulfs the building**__*_

No one can locate the owner of the voice and no one dared raise their hopes up, everyone merely shifted their gaze down to the floor with a strained expression mixed with sadness and loneliness.

False hope led to disappointment and disappointment led to pain.

For the past several months, this cycle was repeated by the guild members who went on missions in hopes of finding the boy but failed to even come close to a clue of his whereabouts.

Even Erza and Grey have spent the several months after the boy's absence doing numerous amounts of jobs in order to find the boy failed (though Grey would never admit to showing concern over the fire brain).

...

Noticing the grave atmosphere arise again, master Makarov was about to attempt to lighten the mood until, a sudden sound of wings flapping, echoed in the silent guild hall.

Focusing all of the attention on the bird, the guild noticed it to be a messenger bird with white feathers holding onto a simple white letter with a red seal enclosing the contents.

"Hm? Who's this from?" asked the old man rhetorically as the bird drops a letter to his hands.

"This message is from Natsu – sama" replied the bird emotionless, before taking off.

…

..

.

*** """"""""""""""WWHHHAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTT?!"""""""" """""" ***

screamed the guild loud enough to be heard from miles away.

Not wasting anytime everyone guild gather around Makarov, looking anxiously at the letter, waiting for the master to unravel the contents.

After several seconds which felt like an eternity, Makarov circles his finger around the seal to undo the spell that closed the letter. Fire bursts from the seal in response and forms a dragon shape which slowly fades, revealing a pink haired boy wearing sleeveless black waistcoat and white knee length trousers; talking with a younger blue haired girl wearing loose fitting green dress with a pattern that resembles scales, supported but a golden colored ring on her neck.

* crackle *

* crackle *

hearing a sound of crackling, the crowd soon turns their attention a bit reluctantly towards the source...

The source being two female mages standing side by side cross armed with a visible aura of malice surrounding them.

The first being the lovely white-haired Mirajane, who is smiling like her usual self, however the aura of malice around her makes her smile seem as if it were the devils grin...

The other being the red-headed Fairy Queen, Erza, who is visibly showing her irritation and is looking quite ready to destroy anything in the vicinity.

With cold sweat running down their entire body, the guild mates (including the master) can only hope for the fire mage in the letter to hurry up and start his letter before the two female mages start to cause a havoc.

_**-5 minutes later-**_

Finally after calming the two down, the guild turns their attention back to the letter, and luckily for them, Natsu has turned his attention away from the mysterious blue haired girl and is now focused on the message.

As if facing the Guild Master himself, Natsu looks straight at Makarov and beings to speak.

"_Yo, Gramps! It's been a while, say to everyone for me! I've sent this letter to tell ya that i'll be back in three days after you get this letter, I need to stop by Hargeon Town for something important. Well then see ya until then~"_

finishing the letter with his usual toothy grin, Makarov cant help but smile at the spirit of the pink haired boy.

'Welcome come back, Natsu...'

Taking a chug of his glass of beer (or what ever alcohol it is) the master set his sights towards his guildies.

"Yosh! Everyone! Make preparations! When Natsu gets back we're having a party!"

announced the guild master as he grinned in high spirits.

""""""""""""""""""""""""YYYYYYYEAHHHHH!""""""""""" """""""""""""

yelled the guild in equally high spirit.

Tasked with cleaning Macao and Wakaba and most of the guild start cleaning the guild with smiles of anticipation for the rowdy pink haired boy's return.

Watching a scene of high spirits and smiles, Makarov remembers he needed Erza to carry out a task for him.

Scanning the sea of people in the building, he can't seem to find the red head... odd...

"Grey! Where is Erza?"

"Hm? I think I saw her and Mira leave the guild after Natsu said he was going to Hargeon Town."

….

…

..

.

"WWHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAATT!?"

* * *

**-****_ 2 days later -_**

A boy with pink ruffled hair takes a step off the train that arrived at this city mostly surrounded by water, known as Hargeon Town.

Though pale in the face and weak knee'd.

Arriving along with him, a blue cat with a green backpack follows behind him a hunched.

***whew***

Taking a deep breath of relief, the boy is feels quite fortunate to actually be able to leave the train in time before it took off to its next destination given his motion weakness.

'hmm... if I remember right this is the place where I met Lucy...'

*stare*

"Hm?"

Feeling that someone is staring at him, Natsu peers around to see Happy by his side looking a bit blue (no I don't mean his fur color).

"What's wrong Happy?"

"What are we doing here Natsu? This isn't the guild." replied the cat.

"I wanted to take a stop here first." smiled the boy.

A bit disappointed, the cat slumps his shoulders. "If we were going to make a stop, then we should have taken more time to say good bye to Wendy and Charl~ "

"Come on, don't be so down! Let's explore town a bit! I hear there's a lot of fish in this town!"

"Aye" replied the cat a bit perked up.

Ending their conversation the duo make their way into town to relax a bit.

Unknown to them a mysterious figure is slyly following after them.

…

Looking from stall to stall, Natsu and Happy check out all the miscellaneous items that each vendor has to offer while buying a lot of meat and fish along the way.

*sniff sniff*

Though Happy hasn't detected yet, Natsu has been trying to track Lucy's scent every since his arrival of time.

"Natsu~ the fish in this town taste good!" exclaimed the blue cat happily chewing on a fish.

"... yeah..." replied the fire mage slowly as his attention was distracted in finding the girl.

'Hm... where is she...'

Walking slowly to the next stand, Happy is enjoying his newly acquired fish, while Natsu some strangers talking about something interesting.

"Oi! Did you hear? The missing FairyTail mage, Salamander is in town!"

"Eh?! How do you know its him?!"

"Idiot! Don't shout!"

Getting bit flustered the two strangers stop their exchange and look around to see if anyone may be ease dropping on their conversation.

Taking a few moments to see if the coast is clear, the two hunch a bit closer together and start to whisper.

A bit interested, Natsu focuses his developed hearing to ease drop.

"I know its him. He's been going on and on to the whole town that he's the famous **Salamander. **Plus he is a fire mage, so it's got to be him!"

"But what is he doing here? I thought he died."

"hmm... I dont know, but now that he's here let's get that reward money!"

'Huh? Died? Reward money? What are they talking about?' thought Natsu confused.

Heading over to a nearby vendor, Natsu faces the seller with a stern face. "Oi, why people making a fuss about Salamander?"

"eh? You haven't heard? Salamander was a fire mage from FairyTail, he was reported missing a few months ago in the Weekly Sorcerer. Apparently there's reward money for whoever reports and finds him."

'hmm…? Maybe I've been gone for too long… Wait a minute! Who's the bastard that decided for me to have died!?'

Feeling quite angry at his friends lack of faith in him, a few veins bulge on his head.

*sniff sniff*

Smelling something familiar, Natsu leaves his thoughts, "Ah! It's Lucy's smell!"

'Grr... OKAY! When I get back, I'm definitely going to beat up whoever decided that!' resolving to himself to pummel the person who considered him dead, the boy reluctantly cools himself from his anger and takes off in the direction of the scent.

Not noticing any of the events that occurred due to his attention being focused on the delicious fish in his mouth, Happy looks up after the sudden lack of noise from his friend.

"Hm?! Natsu?! Where did you go?!"

looking around frantically Happy notices flames in the air relaying a message.

[ Happy, wait for me outside town on the road to FairyTail]

Though a bit hesitant, Happy decides to follow this command (after taking the hidden money in his backpack and buying a few more yummy fishes).

…

"Is that Happy...?"

* * *

_**- in the middle of town -**_

Running through the streets of town, Natsu reaches an familiar scene.

""""""""""~SALAMANDER - SAMA~"""""""""""

the sounds of fan girls cheering on the pompous blue haired fire mage who's using his title fill the plaza.

Among the crowd, Natsu spots an golden haired girl in the center somewhat like he expected.

'Lucy!'

in a bit of glee, the boy storms into the crowd, trying to make his way into the center.

*push*

*shove*

"Gah!?"

'What's with these girls! I think I just got bit!'

reaching the eye of this storm proved difficult for the boy, as nothing is as scary as a crowd of crazy charmed women shoving and pushing their way for lucky/ poor guy in the middle.

Finally after a few moments of pain, Natsu exits the group and appears in the middle of the crowd.

"Lucy!" shouted the boy in glee.

In effect to the boys shout, the spirit mage is released from the charm magic.

"ah..."

Noticing the presence of the boy, "Salamander" diverts his attention from woo-ing the girls to the boy and walks over to him signing on a signature board.

"What's wrong boy? Do you want my signature?"

"hm? Who're you..." replied the pink haired boy in a deadpan look.

* DONG *

a bit shocked, the impostor turns solid white.

While the fan girls stopped their cheering and screaming and look at the dragon mage with eyes of fury and started to attack him.

"How rude!"

"Salamander-sama is a powerful mage!"

"That's right! Apologize!"

yelling and attack ferociously, the girls are relentless... scary...

Coming to her senses, Lucy realizes what has transpired. This unknown boy has saved her from a pervert who used some kind of love magic.

"So, That's the reason." muttered the blond with a grunt.

Looking closer on his right hand, theres a ring with a love emblem on centered at the core. This ring is a magical item known to "Charm" others not aware of its power. It was supposed to have been banned years ago.

"Now, Now, girls that's enough. I'm sure he didn't have any intent of being rude" proposed the imposer.

Standing up and wiping off the dust that covered his clothes from the viscous women, Natsu suddenly remembers this scene, though things seemed similar but different at the same time.

"Oh, Yeah. I remember now."

"Oho? See girls? Everyone knows the great Salam-"

"You're Bora right?" stated the boy with a bit of inquisition as he cuts the man's sentence and tries to remember the his identity.

"Bora?"

"Who's that?"

"I don't know."

Thanks to Natsu's reply; most of the women now are in confusion.

"Wha-?! Wh-Wh-Wh- What are you talking about boy? I'm the great Salama-"

"What are you talking about? Idiot~" the boy butted in again with a mocking tone. "**I'm Salamander**"

"""""""""""""""""""""""""EEEEEEHHHHHHHHH!?"""""""" """""""""""""""""

Taking a few seconds to register what the pink haired boy just proclaimed, everyone in the crowd screamed in shock.

How can this be so? Their's a man with Blue hair and slender build who claims to be the famous Salamander; the FairyTail fire mage whose been missing for nearly a year. Yet this pink haired, fairly built boy with a dark purple overcoat, white puffed pants and criss crossed muffler declares himself to be Salamander.

'Is he the real Salamander? The fire mage said to have a rare, one of a kind, fire magic?

Lucy thought to herself, Unable to make heads or tails of this situation, the girl can only stares in awe at the pink haired boy who seems to be around her age.

"Wh-What proof do you have?! I DEMAND PROOF!" demanded Bora with a smug grin.

'There's no way this punk is the real Salamander. After all Salamander been missing for nine months, theres no way he can be here, let alone this punk.'

Nine months have passed since his disappearance, tales of Salamander's accomplishments (in other words destruction caused by him) were quite famous through out Fiore. In the time he was missing, many rumors and stories circulated through out the continent as some believed he died on a dangerous mission, some say he was caught by the kingdom's rune soldiers, and others simply brushed off the idea of Salamander even being real. However the common thing with all these rumors is that Salamander (as true to the name) possessed a unique fire magic.

Drawing all eyes on the pink haired boy, everyone is watching the boy in suspense; waiting for how he will respond to the imposer's demand.

Not daunted in the slightest, Natsu shrugs his shoulders and sighs.

"Jeez, what a stingy guy"

dropping his backpack onto the ground, Natsu slowly takes off his coat.

Mean while, a man who recently entered the large crowd circling around Natsu and Bora, ponders about something.

"Salamander? Where have I heard that name before?"

"Hm? What are you talking about? Talk of Salamander has been circulating all over town, and he's right there."

some one replied to the rhetorical question.

"No, that's not what I mean... What was the description again..."

Rubbing his chin in thought, the man finally remembers.

"I-I remember, Salamander!" proclaimed the man; gathering attention of those interested in hearing.

With cold sweat dripping down his cheek, the man elaborates his words as he stares straight at Natsu.

"Salamander was said to have pink hair, like that of a cherry blossom; a white checkered muffler that resembled scales of a dragon; But his most defining trait was his unrivaled destructive fire magic.

…

Paying no attention to the chattering crowd, Natsu slowly takes off his purple robe and tosses it to the ground; revealing his Fairy Tail emblem.

"If I remember right, Salamander was suppose be from Fairy Tail right?" mocked Natsu

"Wh-!"

"I've never seen you in Fairy Tail before"

Feeling cornered by the unexpected turn of events, Bora could only do what was best, well at least what he thought was best.

"SHITTY BRAT! DI-!"

not being able to finish his line, Natsu quickly dashes towards him and connects his fist in his stomach; instantly knocking him unconscious.

* Whooshh~~ *

the sound of the wind engulfs the center of town, as everyone is left stunned by the skirmish that occurred.

First identity theft, then quickly defeated. This imposer really has it rough...?

Registering the events that unfolded, the crowd set their attention back to the location the pink haired boy is now, however the boy and his belongings, is no where to be found...

the only proof of his presence is the toppled, blue haired imposer who is hunched over on the ground clutching his stomach.

"Natsu..." whispered a white-haired girl hidden the crowd.

* * *

Authors Note: Okay, i feel like i lied as i haven't been able to work on this as much as i would like due to the constant exams and request to work extra at my job...

thus this chapter didn't turn out as well as i expected, soooo, i'll redo this chapter later, but for now i'll continue writing new chapters and other stories that interest me.

AND a newly created poll can be seen in my profile page! as well as updates on the story~


	7. Chapter 7 preview

_**DISCLAIMER: i do not own FairyTail in any shape or form, all of that stuff belongs to Mashima Hiro.**_

* * *

**Chapter 7**

**Welcome Home!**

**Part 2**

* huff huff*

Struggling to intake air as she runs through town, the girl felt each breath brought pain to her lungs and each step brought a piercing pinch to her ankles.

Exhaustion was the best word to describe her state as she ran as fast as she could in pursuit of the boy with pink hair.

Peering through the small crowd of people while running; the blond haired girl didn't want to miss her chance she had to locating the pink haired boy.

His intention wasn't to save her but he did. So she had to thank him, and if possible, have him help her join the guild of her dreams.

But there also was this unknown feeling that was nagging at her, something familiar, something like nostalgia, but also a feeling of admiration or maybe more?

Nothing was for certain, well except the face that she has reached her limit and need a breather.

Taking a quick stop from running, she arcs her torso slightly forwards and puts her hands on her knees for support as she takes a momentary stop to catch her breath by a district in the town where all sorts of taverns are selling various kind of goods.

"Geez~ , where did that guy go?"

the girl manage to say in between intakes of air.

'Salamander'

was the only description about that boy, however... Lucy did remember hearing some one murmur the word "Natsu" in the crowd as well.

'Maybe Natsu was his name?'

Hearing the growing crowd around her, Lucy breaks away from her thoughts, feeling rested enough to continue searching for the boy.

Standing tall, she takes one step... but to her surprise the boy she was looking for is standing a few meters in front of her with a puzzled expression.

Judging from the way he has his hand rested on his chin and the slight tilt of his head, she gathered that the boy seems to be deep in thought, most likely meaning that he, was lost.

' This is my chance!

… But... what do I do!?

Just walking up to him and talking would be weird!

But-but-but I really want to join FairyTail and I need to thank him too!

What do I do?

What do I do!? '

Flustered about her next decision, the spirit mage grabs her head and flails around in frustration, causing people to look in amusement and concern.

* * *

**-Natsu-**

"Hmm... where am I?"

Despite looking around, nothing seems familiar.

' I managed to run away from the crowd but I don't know where I am... and I need to go back to get Lucy...'

Puzzled by what his next move should be, he closes his eyes in hope that would help him concentrate on a plan on what he should do next.

' I need to run back and get Lucy... but if I grab her suddenly then she'll be scared... '

Feeling his head boil from over abusing his brain, the fire mage drops all other thoughts and worries about how the situation would unfold.

' GRAAA!?

I'll just grab her and work it out later! '

Mentally shouting to clear the distracting thoughts, the boy becomes determined to run with the brainless strategy; but to his surprise, he find his target right before him, though flailing about strangely which attracted a large number of people in the district to point and stare at her.

…

" Wh-What is she doing...? "

he murmured to himself a little amused.

* Sniff Sniff *

Making his way to the girl, Natsu couldn't help but catch a familiar oder that came and disappeared in a flash.

' Uh...? What's this smell?

Mira? '

Recognizing as it to be the smell of his friend who shouldn't be in this town, a conclusion comes to mind

' As if...

must be my imagination '

The idea of his friend coming to find him in this remote town despite his letter telling of his arrival was ridiculous, also, for **what reason** would she come? Just for him? Of course not... well at least that's what he thinks...


	8. Question from Author

Sorry for late of updates, but i feel that i need to work on my writing skills a bit before i continue. So to meet that end, i'm asking you a question. What is your favorite fanfic here? please send me a message.

And also, how long can a chapter be?

i've been thinking for the next chapter i release, it will be a REALLY long chapter to make up for my lack of update


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